My Little Wolf
by Autobot Lancewing Beta 06
Summary: In an alternate world where every one's wolves, it is an unending battle between good and evil. Summary is a work in progress.
1. Shadows Chapter 1

**My Little Wolf**

**Shadows**

Chapter 1

In the middle of a forest close to a small town, there lived a large clan of wolves made up of smaller packs. They were led by a white wolf named Celestia, a wise, benevolent leader. Her sister Luna, her niece Cadence, and her daughter Wisteria led smaller packs of wolves. They have lived in perfect unity, but little do they know that enemies will rise and cause battles to rise. In addition, tensions will rise, tensions that will threaten to tear the clan apart.

Comet Tail, a beta ranked hunter, was closely watching a human family getting ready to go on some weird thing they called a 'hike', a lot of the wolves in the packs didn't see the point of 'hiking', they had to walk great distances almost everyday, and that was NOT for fun.

Comet Tail's brother-in-law, Shining Armor, was also watching the humans. "Do you enjoy this, Comet," the white wolf asked.

"Well, I didn't used too, but after Twilight and-"

Shining began to growl, scaring Comet.

"Are you ever gonna accept that me and Twilight are mates now?"

Shining's growl deepened, and he inched closer to Comet.

"Hey look, they're gone," Lancer, the youngest of the group, pointed out.

Comet curled the left part of his lip into a smile, so that Shining couldn't see. Shining grunted, and moved ahead to the house. "This is stupid," he muttered.

"What is," Comet asked.

"This is the girls' job. We're hunters, not gatherers."

"It's for the new guy, we can't throw him into a hunt just yet."

"Then why doesn't he go with the girls on their gathering mission, WHICH IS EXACTLY LIKE THIS?"

"Celestia think he could learn more about hunting from boys than the girls."

"Then why not put him through field training? That would work way better than doing this crud."

"Well, what if we encountered a mountain lion?"

"How would watching humans help with mountain lions?"

"An excellent point," Lancer pointed out.

"Shut it," Comet Tail said, then through gritted teeth. "I'm trying to stick up for you."

"Both of you are bickering like a married couple. And we're in front of a human den to train me. Besides, you and I both know that this conversation has nothing to do with me."

"You've got guts," Shining sneered, "You're first."

"Well if you insist," Lancer said jumping out of the bush. "Maybe I can practice my tracking skills." He starts looking around.

Comet Tail rolled his eyes. 'Tracking skills,' he thought, 'Why didn't I think of that?'

Shining pointed his paw toward the door, allowing Lancer to go first.

Lancer exhaled, and walked over to one of the windows. He found an open one on the side of the house, and managed to wriggle himself into the house. He landed on a basket of laundry. Lancer jumped out and began scanning the house.

Lancer could see several odd things in the human den, there was a large black rectangle, odd squares resting on leg-like things, and weird soft looking cubes. 'humans are weird' Lancer thought, while looking for something his pack could use. 'maybe even something for… her...'

Lancer began to pant as he thought of her; Bright Eyes.

Meanwhile, Bright Eyes is seen reading a book. Her aquamarine fur glistened off of the sunlight. She carefully turned the page of the book, careful not to let her claws rip the page. She read a scene where the human girl pressed her head to her boyfriends face, and kissed him on the lips, as her tongue began to-

Bright Eyes felt her cheeks grow hot, secretly imagining that she was the girl, putting herself close to Lancer and-

"Bright Eyes?"

Bright Eyes looked up to see a certain white wolf.

"Hey there Sweetheart," She said, completely engrossed in her book.

"Watcha doin?"

"N-Nothing," Bright Eyes quickly tossed the book away.

Sweetheart saw the book but didn't bother to ask her about it, though it was suspicious of her to toss it aside.

"So, What are you up to?"

"Well, Patch and Clover were wondering if you'd like to join them in a game of soccer."

Bright Eyes gave it some thought. She has already spent a few hours reading the book. Maybe it would be a good idea for her to stretch her legs. "I think I can." She got up and gave her front legs a good stretch. "Lead the way."

Sweetheart nods and begins running with Bright Eyes following close behind.

Lancer poked his head out of the window and dropped a case of chicken out.

Shining sniffed it. "At least he got something that's easy to open."

Comet Tail glared at Shining. "You are never going to let that one go, are you?"

He grinned. "No I am not."

One time, Comet Tail grabbed something wrapped in tin foil. The tin foil was hard to unwrap and actually hurt some of the wolves' teeth. It turned out that the item in the foil was a fruitcake. It tasted so repulsive that the wolves sent it to the mountain lions. They still have it, but it is being used as a warning to all gatherers. Ever since then, Shining Armor would never get off of Comet Tail's tail about it.

Next, Lancer dropped off a package of Ham, which caused the two wolves to begin drooling at the scent. Their drooling grew as Lancer dropped off a couple packages of bacon.

'Kid's got taste,' Comet thought. The only thing that came close to his love of Twilight, was bacon.

Sweet, delicious, succulent, BACON.

Suddenly, the noise of human shoes walking across dirt.

"Shining did you-"

"Yup. Get outta there Lancer!"

Lancer responded from inside the house, "Okay, hold on! I'm trying to catch this funny running thing, it looks tas-" A loud yelp was heard when the cat swiped him in the nose. "Ow!"

Lancer stumbled out of the side window, a large cut on his nose. But he barely noticed the pain as he bolted off into the woods, with Comet and Shining following close behind.

"That was way too close," Comet Tail said.

"No kidding," Lancer replied, "And we put the girls through this?"

"It's either that or fight a live caribou," Comet answered.

Lancer thought about it for a minute. "Sounds like a good enough reason."

"Will you two quit yapping? They'll hear us," Shining hushed.

Celestia was looking outside of the den. Luna was reported missing, leaving Eclipse to lead the pack in her place. 'Where are you, Lu-Lu?'

Celestia lay down in the den, resting her head on her forelegs.

It wasn't solely because of her relationship with Luna that Celetia was distressed, but also because of the failing hunts and disorganized gatherings that she was worried.

Eclipse walked into the den folding his wings as he entered. Upon sitting, Celestia got to her paws. "Still nothing," Celestia asked.

Eclipse sighed, "No, I don't know what happened, I just woke up and she was- gone..."

Solaris got up and looked at his best friend. "We'll find her, Eclipse. Don't worry. How's Lancer."

"He's doing fine, but he has yet to learn about it."

"I see."

"Yeah, I darted out to look for her before I could wake him."

Just as he finished that sentence, Wisteria walked in. "I came as soon as I heard," She said, "Everyone in my pack is looking for her now. I can't believe this happened."

Solaris nodded, "This is distressing. As soon as Shining Armor returns I'll see that he's on the job."

Eclipse nodded, "And what about Cadence?"

"I've already sent a messenger to her pack," Celestia said, "I'm waiting for her response."

"Thank you, because at this point, we'll need all the help we can get."

Before Celestia could reply, Shining Armor, Comet Tail, and Lancer entered the den. All bowing.

The three males dropped the various items that had been in their mouths, but looked up to see Celestia, a sad expression on her face.

Comet and Shining looked at each other, while Lancer scanned the faces. Celestia, Eclipse, Solaris, and Wisteria were present, but there was one face that was missing. He immediately thought, 'Where's Mom?'

Celestia saw the look of concern on her nephews face, and asked that she and he be alone, except Eclipse. Everyone else understood and began to slowly exit the den.


	2. Shadows Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Lancer looked at his Aunt, then to his father, then back to his Aunt. "M-mom is-"

"we don't what happened to her, Lancer, but we'll find her," Celestia leaned over gave Lancer a small lick between his eyes, "I promise."

Lancer could smell his father coming, and soon, Eclipse pulled his son close, allowing Lancer to feel his fathers soothing warmth.

He sat there for a few more minutes, then, "If it's ok, I'd like to go and see Bright Eyes."

"it's fine, Lancer," Eclipse replied.

Lancer gave his father a loving nuzzle, "Thank you."

Eclipse nods, "Take care."

"You too." With that, Lancer walks out.

The ball rolled a few inches before being kicked by Patch. The ball sailed through the air and Bright Eyes ran underneath, anticipating it's landing position. As she suspected, it landed a few inches from her nose, she batted it with her right paw back to Patch.

Patch watched as the ball sailed through the air towards him. Unfortunately, she had run a little too quickly and the ball hit her in the ribs, she yelped as she rolled into a nearby tree- the ball was now free game.

The players-Bright Eyes, Patch, Clover, and Melody- as well as Sweetheart, who was watching the game, saw their friend hurt, so instead of leaping at the ball like a Black Friday special, the rushed to their friend. "Are you okay, Patch," Bright Eyes called out.

"Uh...I think so…" Patch replied, shaking off a few fallen off leaves.

They all gave a sigh of relief. Bright Eyes helped Patch get to her paws. Patch immediately ran back toward the ball with the other three following.

"Careful Patch!" Bright Eyes called out.

"Bright Eyes?"

Bright Eyes looked behind to see who had called her; it was Lancer.

"Lancer!" Bright Eyes pulled Lancer into a large hug. Bright Eyes felt Lancer's wet nose nuzzle her neck. Bright Eyes could tell something was wrong with him. Bright Eyes looked at Lancer, she noticed the large cut on his nose.

"Oh, what happened to your nose?"

"Oh...I forgot about that," Lancer rubbed his snout, "I- Can I talk to you?"

"Um...sure, Lancer," Bright Eyes looked to the others, who looked at her. Bright Eyes pointed to Lancer, and the others nodded. Lancer took her aside. Bright Eyes could feel something was wrong, Lancer was normally in a good mood, this was-strange.

Lancer sighed, he wasn't sure how to break this to to Bright Eyes, he began to run through in his mind, how to start. He soon found something that would work, and told her. "Bright Eyes...my mom's- she's missing."

Bright Eyes stared at Lancer, stunned. "She's-missing...how? She's the leader of our pack! Leaders don't do that! Is everyone looking for her?"

"Yes...I was hoping you'd go with me to help find her."

Bright Eyes smiled, "Of course I will, Lancer." She put her paw on Lancer's cheek.

Lancer began to blush. "Um…"

Bright Eyes giggled, she then pressed her nose to his. "Let me get you fixed up before we head out."

"Ok, but we need to hurry. There's no telling what's happened to her."

Bright Eyes nodded, breaking the loving embrace (if you call rubbing noses an embrace), and let Lancer lead the way back.

Twilight Sparkle was laying at the stream, watching as the water gently flowed over the rocks. She placed her paw in the water; the cool water felt refreshing to her.

She took her paw out, and lowered her head so she could lap up the water, it felt so refreshing to her.

Soon, she picked up on the scent of her mate. She looked behind to see him approaching her, a worried look on his face.

When he finally reached her, a smile spread on both their faces. Comet sat down next to Twilight. "How did it go," Twilight asked in a low, loving tone.

Comet laid down, "okay, Lancer did well..."

"Good," Twilight then rested her head on Comet's paws, closing her eyes, "I missed you."

"I missed you, too," Comet lay his head on hers, trying to ease his stress. "How's the little one?"

"She's got a lot of kick, that's for sure."

"She?"

"Maternal instinct, plus that was what I was hoping for."

"Odd, I was too. And I imagined she'd be as pretty as you."

Twilight blushed, nuzzling Comet's chest.

"Twilight!"

Both Twilight and Comet Tail turned to see a purple and green mountain lion cub running towards them.

"Spike," Twilight said as she stood up, "What's wrong?"

"I just heard, Luna's missing."

"What?!"

Cadence was walking around the territory. Recently, she had spotted enemy wolves attempting to attack her pack. The only reason why they aren't able to now is because of a barrier she set up as a precautionary measure. 'This is bad, really bad. Especially with Aunt Luna missing.'

Since Cadence had set up the barrier, she invited her aunts' and cousin's packs into her den to discuss this new turn of events, so that Celestia wouldn't have to make a barrier herself. And because Wysteria wasn't able to. Eventually, the remaining three entered the barrier: Comet, who was looking kind of tired. Twilight, whose stomach was already beginning to grow due to the pup growing inside her. And Spike, the lion cub Twilight had taken under her proverbial wing when they were young.

Once everyone took a seat, Celestia began to explain the situation. "Thank you all for coming, in case you haven't heard already, my sister, Luna, has disappeared." By the time she was able to deliver her next thought, a commotion began to rise from every wolf present. One was even running in circles (of course, that was Minty, who was the entertainer of the group).

Solaris didn't want to see his pack in such a frenzied state. "Enough," He barked, at the top of his lungs and began to glare at any wolf who dared make eye contact with him.

"You're all acting like a bunch of scared puppies, why not go out looking for Luna instead of running around wondering what we'll do? Is this what she'd want?!"

Eclipse grunted, and returned to his place next to Celestia. "I agree with Solaris. We don't know what happened to her nor if she is well, but the last thing we want to do is panic," Celestia told them.

Shining Armor stood up, "I agree with both of them. We should head out and try and find Luna before nightfall."

"Excellent, but I want all of you to travel in groups of two, this is hunting season for the humans, and I don't want anyone to get hurt or worse," Celestia said, "And don't forget who we're talking about here. Luna is not called the 'Night Alpha' for no reason."

Comet looked over to Twilight to see if she'd be his search partner- but she was already over by Minty asking her. 'Great, she's mad at me.'

Comet looked to Spike, "Well, looks like it's just you and me, kid."

"Oh, uh, o-okay."

"Something wrong?"

Spike shook his head.

"You can tell me."

Same response.

"Cat got your tongue?"

Spike glared at Comet, obviously finding the phrase offensive.

"Sorry, but you're gonna tell me sooner or later."

"As long as you stop with the cat puns."

"Deal."

Lancer and Bright Eyes were already outside of wolf territory, trying to get back, but Bright Eyes saw the gathering.

"What's that about," She asked.

"Probably about my mom's disappearance and assembling search parties"

"Oh, well, we'll start looking as soon as I get that nose fixed up."

"I just hope she's okay."

"Me too," Bright Eyes, gently nuzzled Lancer's neck, hoping to give him some small comfort.

"Thanks,"

"What are friends for?"

Lancer chuckled, "True, but- never mind."

"What?"

"It's nothing…" Suddenly, Lancer began to have visions in his head, visions of things he didn't remember seeing. He suddenly stopped in his tracks, gaining a worried look from Bright Eyes. "Lancer?"

But Lancer couldn't hear her. He put a paw to his head in pain. The visions continued to flood his mind, making his head hurt in the process.

Bright Eyes called his name again. Still nothing. At this point, she didn't know what to do. "Lancer, I don't know what's wrong, but I want to-"

Suddenly, Lancer collapsed!

"LANCER," Bright Eyes yelled, she ran to him while howling for the others to come. In just seconds, other wolves began to gather around them.

When Eclipse finally broke through the crowd of wolves, his heart sank when he saw what they were looking at. "Lancer?!" Eclipse rushed to his side and carefully put him on his back. "Bright Eyes, I need you to get to Cadence's den, NOW!"

Bright Eyes nodded and darted off in that direction.

Celestia could see Bright Eyes towards the den, she ran over to her and asked. "What's wrong?"

"Lancer! He just collapsed!"

"Oh goodness!" Celestia rushed over and saw her brother-in-law carrying Lancer on his back. "Do you need any help?"

"No, but if Twilight's not here, I need her," Eclipse explained.

Celestia nodded, "Understood," Right before Celestia bolted off, she noticed Lancer, he looked so...weak. Celestia felt a twinge of fear go through her spine but looked away after remembering this wouldn't do any good.

'Stay strong, Lancer, we need you.'


	3. Shadows Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Twilight was carefully sniffing the ground. So far, she was not able to catch Luna's scent. "Found anything, Twi?" Minty called from a few yards away.

"Nothing yet," Twilight replied, "I wanted to believe that she left because she was sick, but I can't pick up her scent."

"But Eclipse said she was fine when they went to sleep," Minty pointed out.

"Maybe, but I do remember waking up with a cold the next morning. If it could happen to me, it could happen to her. The lack of scent seems to suggest that she was flying, but that is the last thing you want to do when you're not feeling well."

"But you're pregnant, which would explains your cold, wouldn't it?"

"Side effects of pregnancy are nausea, mood swings, increased appetite, and exhaustion. Trust me, none of those are even close to a cold."

"Okay. But maybe Luna's pregnant with another pup?!"

"Luna's never left the pack just because of pregnancy. There would have to be another reason for it."

"Hmm…" Minty pressed her nose back to the ground, continuing to sniff for Luna's scent, but then another thought occurred to her. "Sis?"

"Yes?"

"Are you sure you should be doing all this?"

"Yes I'm sure. I can't just sit back and watch as the other wolves are looking for her. I can't afford to let Celestia down just because I'm going to have a pup."

"Well, okay." Minty started sniffing, when yet again, another thought came to her. "Twi?"

"WHAT?!"

"I was just wondering why you chose me, and not Comet Tail."

"I'm angry with him for withholding from me the important fact that Luna was missing. Now can we get back to work?!"

"Yeah, yeah, but tone it down, will ya?"

"Oh, was I being too loud?" A tear began forming in her eye, "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to yell. I- I just-"

"Twilight. Get. A. Grip. You really need to get a hold of yourself."

"I can't help it! It's not my fault Comet decided-"

"ENOUGH!" Minty stormed off.

"Wait!" Twilight began to run after her, but she suddenly heard a loud, metal click. That sound was soon followed by a painful snap in her right hind leg. This resulted in a painful yelp from Twilight. "What on earth-" Twilight looked at the leg and saw that a large bear trap had caught her, blood began to ooze from the sharp spikes in her leg. Knowing what was going to happen, she delivered a howl for help.

Minty immediately heard the cry and darted back. Her eyes were as wide as dinner plates when she saw what had happened. "TWILIGHT!" She ran up to her and tried to pry the trap open. "Yow!" Minty yelled in pain, hurting her jaw on the large spikes.

"Minty, we need a large rock to keep the trap from closing if it should open; otherwise, you'll get caught too."

"Uh-ok, I'll go get help," Minty ran off, howling, leaving Twilight alone to struggle with the trap.

Twilight began looking at the mechanism of the trap, trying to see if maybe there were a way for it to open up. 'This isn't good, what if the human who put this here comes back?! And he- No! Stop! Minty'll get help, and maybe someone heard me. And if you keep stressing, you might hurt the pup, so STOP freaking out!'

She began to hear footsteps. Unfortunately, those were too loud for another wolf. 'No, no, no! This isn't good THIS IS NOT GOOD. Please just be Spike? He's big, right?' Who was she kidding? Spike is still a cub, too small to make footsteps as loud as those. She suddenly felt a small pinch on her neck. 'OW! What in the world...' As seconds passed, she began to feel weird, as if she had too many fermented berries…

"C'Mon, Spike! We've gotta get to her." Comet yelled while rushing through the forest, with Spike following behind. Both of them heard Twilight's yelp, and Comet instantly identified it as his mate.

"Can you please slow down," Spike yelled while panting heavily.

Comet ignored his adopted son while still trying to get to Twilight as fast as he could. 'Please be alright, please be alright.' He thought, 'And please for goodness' sake stay calm.'

He finally made it to the scene, only to see the empty bear trap with Twilight's blood. "No no no no no no! No this isn't happening this just isn't happening! So help me if she got caught by a human and they-" Comet growled and flared his nostrils. "I will KILL whoever did this."

Lancer began to wake up. His head was still hurting from what had transpired; therefore he couldn't bring himself to get up. He opened his eyes and saw that he was in Cadence's den. He could see her, Aunt Celestia, his father, and Bright Eyes all talking at the mouth of the den.

He let out a groan before saying, "Did we find her yet?"

Everyone suddenly turned to face him. Bright Eyes' face lit up.

"Lancer." she ran toward him and gave him a large hug. He groaned due to the pain. "Oh, sorry," Bright Eyes gave a little giggle as she released.

"Ow… I have to admit, that is some grip. Anyway, did we find Mom?"

Celestia shook her head. "To make matters worse, Twilight was reported missing."

Lancer's eyes widened. "What?!" He grabbed his head. Obviously he should have stayed asleep.

"Lancer, you need to rest," Cadence cautioned.

Lancer wouldn't hear it. "Do you think thats related to Mom's disappearance?"

"Let's hope they're not," Eclipse stated.

Outside of the den, Shining Armor and Comet Tail could be heard arguing. 'Great,' Celestia thought as she rolled her eyes, 'That's all we need right now.'

"All I'm saying is that if you had actually tried to get there, Twilight would still be here," Shining said.

"You didn't think I would have thought of that," Comet argued, "You were just as capable, were you not?"

"Now wait a minute, I was too far away to have made it in time."

"So was I!"

"You were probably slowing down so that that cat could catch up."

"Spike had nothing to do with this."

"Well, the way I see it-"

Cadence finally barked, "Will you two just shut up already!" The two males looked at the normally calm Cadence. "Shining Armor, you and Comet have been at each other's throats ever since he met Twilight, and I'm sick of it! We're all sick of it! How Twilight can stand either of you I have no idea!"

Celestia was just as shocked as the wolves Cadence was yelling at, not to mention Bright Eyes and Lancer. Celestia went over to Cadence, "Cadence, you're tired, get some rest. We'll look for Luna and Twilight." She nodded, but was still irritated. " Don't worry, I'll deal with them myself."

Cadence sighed, "Yes Auntie."

As Cadence proceeded to the back of the den, Celestia glared at the two. "Both of you come with me right now." Both followed her outside of the den where they were out of earshot of everyone else. Both wolves looked very upset, their heads and tails hung low. Celestia glared at them, "You two have been arguing since Comet met Twilight, and it got worse after the two became mates. This is ridiculous, you two need to STOP." Celestia looked at Comet, "Comet, Shining is Twilight's older brother, older brothers are generally protective of their little sisters, accept that." Then she looked at Shining, "Shining, you are her older brother, but this is absurd. Twilight has a right to mate to a male, it's been that way for thousands of years. Accept that. Do you BOTH understand?" They both nod. That wasn't a good enough answer for her. "Say it."

Comet Tail spoke first, "I understand."

Shining Armor followed suit, "It won't happen again."

Celestia nodded. "Now, neither one of you are to blame for Twilight's disappearance. Truth is that no one would have been able to help her. Minty explained what happened."

"What happened?" Both asked in unison.

"As you know, she was caught in a trap, but it was impossible to open. After Minty ran off to get a rock as Twilight instructed, the human almost immediately appeared."

"Human?!" They (again) asked in unison.

* * *

Is there anything NotRamjet97 and I are doing right? What needs improvement? Your comment could help this story. Please review.


	4. Shadows Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Lancer remained on the pile of leaves, trying to gather his thoughts on everything. His mom had disappeared, a friend of his had apparently been captured by humans, he had that strange vision, and these leaves were REALLY uncomfortable. He did have one compensation, however. After everyone had left, Bright Eyes remained behind, she lay on the leaves next to him, curled up in a ball, resting her head on Lancer's back. Despite the throbbing pain in his head, Lancer found that this helped a lot, though it did make him wonder why she had stayed behind.

but at the same time, it hurt to think. Plus, when a beautiful girl is laying with you, you think a whole lot less about stuff like that.

"Bright Eyes…"

"Yes?"

"I need to tell you something, but you might think I'm crazy."

"I doubt that."

"Okay… I had this weird dream that seemed real. There were black wolves that were taking over the pack and this one that I assume is the leader said that the night would live on forever. I didn't see her face, but I just knew that she was an enemy. Sounds crazy, right?"

"It would be crazy if you said that it were a prediction."

"I think it is, but I'm not sure yet. I just hope I'm wrong."

"So do I," she said, nuzzling closer, "I don't want you to be crazy."

He gave a light chuckle.

Twilight was waking up. Her head was sore from what had happened before she blacked out, but not her leg. She looked at her leg to see that a long, metal stick was tied to her leg. It was cushioned by a soft substance, bandages wrapped around cotton. 'What on Earth?' She pulled on it, but that only hurt her leg.

"I wouldn't do that again if I were you," a voice said.

Twilight immediately stopped. She looked around and saw a metal fence on one side brick walls on the other three. Two of the three walls had openings that would have allowed her to walk in or out. She was laying in the middle of a hard, stone floor, but she was laying on a rather soft blanket. She asked as calmly as possible, " Okay, whoever you are… Show yourself…" From one of the openings, a yellow wolf shyly walked through. Twilight could only stare at her. "Did they capture you too?"

"Um… N-no," the wolf answered, "I was rescued…"

"Rescued? You call this being rescued?"

"Well… After you leg broke in half after getting caught in a bear trap…"

"Wait, how did you-"

"I overheard them say it."

"Who's 'them'?"

"The humans that saved you."

"Humans saved-? That doesn't make any sense!"

"Well, not all humans are bad…"

"They planted the trap that stuck me in here."

"You must be thinking about those barbaric hunters," another voice said.

Twilight's ears perked up. "Who's that?"

"Oh, that was Rarity."

"Rarity?" A white wolf then entered from where the yellow one had come, one thing Twilight noticed almost immediately was her large stomach. It was an obvious sign that she was pregnant as well, though seemed to be farther along than Twilight. "I take it you're Rarity."

"That would be right, Darling."

"If you don't mind my asking, what brought you two here?"

"I- I was orphaned," the yellow wolf answered.

"And I was the only survivor in my pack," Rarity said.

"Oh… Wow." And Twilight thought she had it rough.

"I had to be treated for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder," Rarity added.

"M-my mom uh, abandoned me because I was the runt of the litter." The yellow one explained.

'Are they trying to make me feel bad?' Twilight was about to say something, but…

"You're awake!"

Twilight jumped when she heard yet another new voice. "Wh-Who was that?!"

"That was Pinkie Pie," the yellow wolf answered.

Suddenly, a pink wolf popped up right in front of Twilight, their muzzles inches away from each other. "Hiya! Howareyoudoingmyname'sPinkiePiewhatsyours?Doyoulik eparties,that'sasillyquestionwhodoesn'tlikeparties Imean-"

"Slow down, darling, let her catch her breath." Rarity told the pink wolf.

"Oh, ok! But can we throw a party?"

"Maybe later, sugarcube," yet another voice answered.

'Wow, how many wolves are there?'

This time, an orange wolf appeared, wearing a cowboy hat. "Rarity's right, we need to give the poor gal some time."

Twilight looked at the orange wolf, "And you are?"

"Name's Applejack. Pleased to meet ya."

"Likewise," Twilight smiled. She looked at the yellow wolf. "And what's your name?"

"F- Fluttershy…"

"Fluttershy?"

Fluttershy nodded.

"Well, reckon we oughta get Dashie out here," Applejack said, "If that's alright with ya."

"Oh. Sure," Twilight answered.

Applejack led the way while the others followed outside. Twilight tried to get up, but instantly fell down. "Ow!" Twilight yelped.

The others turned to look. Applejack looked at her leg. "Oh… Sorry," she said, "I forgot about that. Let me see if I can get her in here."

"That would be a good idea."

With that, Applejack walked outside.

Meanwhile, two wolves are seen looking in the forest. One was tan and is obviously an athlete. The other was maroon with black streaks of lightning going along his body. "Sniff either of 'em yet," The tan one asked, impatiently.

"Not yet, Ace," the maroon one answered.

"Shoulda gone with Melody." Ace mumbled.

"Huh?" The maroon one asked.

"Nothing…"

The maroon wolf was now curious. " I know you said something. Now spill it."

"It's not of your business, Lightning."

"Tell me right now."

"No."

"Tell me."

Ace was about to reply when he heard a noise. "What was that?"

"Beats me, maybe it's Luna or Twilight?!"

"Can't be. The scents don't match."

"Oh yeah, then who-"

Just then, three black wolves jumped out at them. Ace and Lightning backed away. "Definitely not Luna or Twilight," Lightning said.

Ace looked at the three wolves that were staring back at them. "Ya think?"

The two males backed away from the black wolves.

Lighting spread his wings.

"Lightning, what are you doing?"

"About to teach these wolves a lesson." Without a second thought. Lightning took off to the sky with two of the wolves following, leaving one of them to Ace. "Why couldn't all of you follow?"

The wolf growled in response.

Ace gulped, then dashed off.

The wolf followed close behind.

Wind Whistler and Firefly, meanwhile, we're have having their own problems. "So you DON'T like singing," Wind Whistler asked her pink companion.

"Not really, especially when there's more important things like out-playing the boys in everything," Firefly explained.

"But you have such a pretty voice."

"Whatever…" Firefly muttered, putting her nose back to the ground.

Wind Whistler wasn't one to give up, however. "Can't you sing a little?"

"No."

"Please?"

"Yes!"

"Yes! finally!"

"No, not you! I got a scent!"

Wind Whistler sniffed the air, but... "That's not Twilight Sparkle or Luna."

"I know, but it smells like a human, and does this look like where a human would hang out?"

"It is illogical... Unless it's a hunter."

"Exactly, so maybe we should wrangle up the others?"

"Good idea."

The two girls began howling a signal for the others to come.

"What did you find?" Celestia asked.

"We smelled a human, maybe the one that nabbed Twilight." Firefly explained.

"A hunch?" Shining asked, questioningly.

"Maybe it's a hunch. But it could be?" Wind Whistler hoped.

Just then, Ace burst in.

"Ace what's-"

"Run!"

The black wolf suddenly pinned Ace. Ace tried to wriggle free, but the black wolf was too strong.

Finally, Celestia used her magic to lift the wolf. She looked into its eyes before she slammed it against a rock, causing it to dissipate.

Ace stared at Celestia, amazed his leader did something so violent. "Um...Thank you."

Celestia ignored his gratitude. "Solaris, call everyone back."

"Why?"

"Just do it." Celestia barked.

"Ok...but what's wrong?"

Celestia loosened a bit. "I will tell you later, my love. But for now I need everyone."

"Alright." Solaris briefly nuzzled Celestia's snout and began to call out to the remaining members of the pack.

Meanwhile, Celestia lay down, thinking. 'Please, let me be wrong.'


	5. Shadows Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Lightning Thrash was in a cave chained to the wall. He was bruised on his hips, shoulders, and eye. He also had cuts and fractures. While some of those injuries resulted from his crash landing, a majority of them were the product of an interrogation. "I...still won't...talk, ya know."

The black wolf growled, and slapped Lightning. "You will talk. Now how is your pack's security set up?"

"I told you, I don't know!"

"Then I'm sure you want to take it up with my boss."

"Does he have business cards?"

"A funny little omega, aren't you?"

"I am not an omega…"

"Then what are you? Certainly not a Beta."

"And obviously not an alpha. One more guess…"

"Lion chow…"

"Gamma. I am a gamma," he said with a smirk.

"You'll still be lion chow."

"Meh, makes sense. I mean, lions would instantly spit you out."

"Hey! I'll have you know I'm very tasty!"

Lightning was now laughing. After the interrogator realized what had just happened, he smacks Lightning in his already fractured wing. Lightning yelps, immediately stopping the laughter. "I've just had about enough of you!"

Lightning panted. The pain was too great for him to handle; therefore, he collapsed. The interrogator suddenly bit Lightning's neck.

"Ow!" Lightning yelped, "Can't I get a break?"

"That was just for fun," The interrogator sneered, a dab of blood dripping from his teeth. "Just be lucky that it didn't kill you."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah..." He panted.

"Enough!" A male voice called. The wolf immediately stopped and sat down in an upright position. The male walks in. He was grey and black with scars all over his body.

"Let me guess, you're Sombra."

"That is King Sombra to you," he snarled.

"Ego much?"

Sombra growled, causing Lightning to whimper.

Sombra chuckled, "You know your place. Good. I hope you behave around my new bride. She doesn't take well to the likes of you."

"And your bride is… Chrysalis?"

"Never heard of her."

"Well there goes that theory."

"Silence! I see that the interrogator has failed his job." He looked at the wolf who was now cowering. "I'll make sure to fix that behavior."

"Good luck. I tricked him into saying that he's tasty."

"Shut up," the interrogator barked.

"Be gone," Sombra told the interrogator, "I'll handle him."

"As you command…" The wolf walked out, leaving Lightning and Sombra in the cave alone.

"Now...Shall we begin?" Sombra sneered.

Lancer was looking outside the den. He had finally recovered and was ready to begin searching for Luna and Twilight. However, Celestia mentioned that there was something that needed to be addressed. He began to sniff for his aunt while trying to sniff for Twilight and Luna.

Bright Eyes asked, "Anything?"

"No," Lancer replied, "We just have to wait. Aunt Celestia said that there could be a development in what happened to Luna."

"Maybe she was sick."

"I don't know. If she were sick and didn't want anyone to catch what she has, don't you think she would let us know somehow?"

"Perhaps, but how?"

"She normally writes something on the ground."

"Ok, but would it be some place?"

"It's normally in a den away from the pack."

"Hmm...should we try to find one?"

"I'm sure Dad checked all of them."

"Hmm...Maybe we should look by the river, hunters like putting traps there for beavers, maybe she got caught."

"Maybe… I mean, if it happened to Twilight, it could happen to Mom."

"Let's go."

"Let's."

They start to walk out, but they see Celestia walk up to the den, with other wolves behind her. "Uh...hi," Lancer greeted.

"Hello, Lancer. I assume you're feeling better?"

"I am." He looks past her. "What's with the wolves behind you."

"WHAT?!" Celestia looked behind and saw the same black wolves. "This just ISN'T my day."

"No it isn't!" One of the wolves sneered.

Lancer and Bright Eyes quickly gathered that they were enemies and instantly got into a defensive stance. "Get into the den, Aunt Celestia, I'll hold them off."

"No! I can't ask you to do that!"

"If something happens to you, who'll lead us?"

"You're not ready to fight."

"Are we really doing this now?"

"Yes. Go into the den, Lancer."

"But-"

"Now!" She barked.

Lancer glared at Celestia, and bolted towards the black wolf.

"Lancer!" Celestia yelled, but Lancer tuned her out as he bolted towards the intruder.

The wolf jumped at Lancer, but Lancer spread his wings and used them to jump over the wolf before pinning him. The wolf tried to bite Lancer's throat, but Lancer quickly slammed his jaw down on the black wolf, causing him to yelp. He squirmed but Lancer managed to hold him down.

"Who are you?!" He demanded.

The wolf looked at him, then spat on Lancer.

Lancer barked and bared his teeth, moving in so close their muzzles nearly touched. "Who are you?" The black wolf asked, slyly.

"I am Lancer, son of Eclipse and Luna. So who are you?"

"My name is not important. All you need to know is that we are going to be your destruction."

Lancer froze for a second, not sure how to proceed. The wolf just stared at him, no expression on his face.

Suddenly, both of them were absorbed in a yellow glow, and moved away from each other.

"Lancer, that wolf isn't real," Celestia said.

"What?"

"None of these wolves are. They were created using a spell. See?" Celestia threw the wolf at a rock with her magic, and it instantly turned to dust.

"Who created them?"

"Spells such as this can only be accomplished with black magic, something that my sister once possessed."

"Um… What do you mean?"

Celestia sighed, "Before your mother and father met, she was rebellious, wanting to lead the entire group all by herself, I told her several times that she couldn't, but she wouldn't listen. She…" Celestia paused, trying to hold back the tears, "While she was in a rage, she killed Shining Armor and Twilight Sparkle's parents."

Lancer's eyes shot open as his jaw dropped. "She… what…?"

Celestia nodded, "They were both young; Twilight was still a pup. She doesn't even remember them."

Lancer shivered, his mother had killed someone? Someone close to a friend?! "Auntie...I-I need to lie down...I-" his stomach felt queasy, one of the two wolves he looked up to most in the world had-

BLEARGH!

Celestia jumped back when Lancer let loose the contents of his stomach! "I-I'm so-"

BLEARGH!

Lancer froze, waiting to see if another wave was going to hit.

BLEARGH!

Yes, it did.

Lancer waited, hoping another wave wouldn't hit. Finally he felt his stomach calm down, but he was shaking. "A-Aunt C-Celest-tia? I-I think I could use some wa-water."

"Okay. Do you need me to go with you?"

"P-Please…"

Celestia gave Lancer a comforting nuzzle, before helping him make his way toward the nearby stream…

"O-One more th-thing…"

"I think it might be best if you leave that question to rest until you settle down."

"O-Okay…"

Sombra backed away from the bruised and bleeding Lightning, "Now, THAT should keep you in line."

"Sombra," A feminine voice called.

Sombra turned to the source of the voice, a sinister smile spread across his face, "Hello, my love."

"I trust the prisoner is under submission."

"He won't be going anywhere for a while, but he's in line."

"Good. Wouldn't want anyone to cause an uprising now, would we?"

"No my darling, they need to learn respect," Sombra glared at Lightning, who whimpered, backing away. "Anyway, why don't you come in here and show him your face, Nightmare Moon."

"With pleasure," she said as she walked in.

Lightning stared at the new wolf. Her appearance and size said that she was Nightmare Moon, but her scent screamed…

"Luna!"


	6. Shadows Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

"Luna!"

**"Silence! Do not speak that name in my presence."**

Lightning swallowed.

**"The wolf that you once knew as Luna is now gone. In her place stands Nightmare Moon."**

"Huh? How?"

**"Luna's spirit is trapped within me, and as long as I live, I will overpower her."**

**"**But...Why? What's the point?"

**"Because Luna was the one who created me, and it is only through her that I exist to this day."**

"Wha- That doesn't make any sense! Why would she-you- Luna make something like that?"

"Oh, you thought she was always the nice wolf she is now?"

"What do you mean?"

"She hated being overshadowed by her older sister. In fact, she enhanced her powers by creating me. In the process, she killed some wolves that opposed her, but her ultimate goal was to destroy Celestia."

"B-but that doesn't sound anything like Luna! She's real nice and-"

"That was because she was convinced by another wolf to turn good, a wolf whose name still leaves a bad taste in my mouth: Eclipse."

"Her mate…"

"If it weren't for him, I wouldn't have had to wait a thousand years to grow powerful enough to take control of her. She thought that she could cancel me through her repentance. Well she thought wrong…"

"But...why now?"

"Because I needed to catch her off guard and increase my power. What's even worse for her is that she can see everything, but she cannot do anything about it. It's a state that's worse than death."

"But why do you need me?"

"I didn't need you to go off warning the others. Unfortunately, one of my other wolves failed in catching your friend and was discovered by Celestia.

"Thank goodness…" Lightning muttered.

"But the assault will still go on schedule, starting with the ones Luna values the most…"

'I have to get out of here, warn everyone! But...how?'

"So, how long have you been pregnant, Twilight?" Rarity asked.

The remaining girls were trying to calm Twilight down while Applejack was looking for Rainbow Dash.

Twilight looked at her stomach, thinking of the growing pup inside her. "Two months, I can't wait."

"Mm...I feel the same way, I miss my pack terribly, and I still have...moments…but without this pup I don't know if I could make it…"

"I-I'd love to...maybe have a pup someday...if I could find someone…" Fluttershy added, softly.

"Ooh! Me too! Me too! How do you get one?" Pinkie asked, looking completely innocent.

Twilight gave Pinkie a strange look. "Um… Well… First you need to find a male who loves you, then…"

"Then what?"

"Might not want to say the next step in front of the pups, even though they aren't born yet." Rarity suggested.

"Yeah...maybe I'll tell you later, Pinkie." Twilight told the pink wolf.

"Pinkie promise?"

"...Huh?"

"Um...I'd be careful if I were you, Pinkie Promises aren't something she takes lightly," Fluttershy warned.

"Indeed," Rarity noted.

"Howdy y'all, finally managed to rangle up Dashie," Applejack greeted. There was a blue winged wolf behind her. She had a slightly irritated expression on her face.

"Which one of you is Twilight Sparkle," the wolf asked.

Twilight stepped up. "I take it you're Rainbow Dash."

"Yeah, so can I go now, AJ?"

"Not just yet. Shouldn't you get to know her first?"

Rainbow pointed at Twilight's stomach. "I know that she's pregnant."

"Yeah, she was caught in a bear trap. She had to come here."

"Okay, see ya." With that, Rainbow Dash began to walked out.

"Okay, what's up with your attitude," Twilight asked.

"I'd rather not talk about it." Dash muttered.

"Well, I guess I'll have to respect your privacy, but try to at least be a little respectful of the rest of us."

Rainbow shrugged and walked back outside.

"So, what's her story."

"Y'all said you would respect her privacy, right," Applejack asked.

"Yeah… Why?"

"Well, she's mainly upset with the day she was brought in here," Rarity answered.

"Figures… So how did you get here, Applejack?"

"Well, my sister and I were out lookin' for apples, um, my parents love apples, kinda explains our name."

"Wait, sister?"

"Yeah, Applebloom, she's the cutest lil' pup-"

"I beg to differ, Applejack," Rarity opposed, "I think Sweetie Belle's VERY adorable."

"Who?"

"My little sister, she was a little pup when my pack...I-" Rarity began to suddenly cower in fear for no reason.

"Shh...Calm down Rarity, I'm sorry." Rarity inhaled hard, then exhaled hard, Applejack lightly nuzzled Rarity's head. After Rarity calmed down for a bit, "Y'all right?"

"Yes, I think so...I just…"

"Just don't worry about it. You're safe here."

"I-I know...it's-"

"Shh...quiet there, sugarcube, don't try and think about it. Why don't ya think about your pup? Do ya want a boy or girl?"

"I think it would be a nice change if I were to have a boy."

"Oh, that sounds nice," Fluttershy noted, "Have you decided on a name, yet? If you don't mind my asking, that is."

"I really don't know. I think I might want to wait until I see his face."

"Oh, I see. I'm sure you'll have a wonderful name for him." Fluttershy turned to Twilight, so as not to make her feel left out. "What kind are you hoping for, Twilight?"

"I KNOW that I'm going to have a girl," Twilight smirked.

"Really?" Rarity questioned, "HOW do you KNOW?"

"Maternal instinct."

"I see, but it could still be a boy."

"Ooh! Or maybe it's BOTH!" Pinkie squealed.

"Um... Pinkie." Twilight said, " I'm only having one. How can it be a boy and a girl?"

"That's what my mom said, before having all three of us at once!"

"I meant one pup, not one litter."

"Yup, just what mom said."

"Um...How would you-" Applejack started to ask, but, "On second thought, I don't wanna know."

"Okie dokie lokie!"

"So..." Applejack turned to Twilight. "Do you have a name picked out, yet?"

"Well, if I do get a girl, and I know I will, I think I'd name her Stargazer."

The other girls "Awww"-ed at Twilights response.

"That's a beautiful name," Rarity smiled.

"Thank you, my mate and I love Stargazing, so Stargazer just felt right to me."

"Mmm...sounds lovely," Rarity stood up, "I'm terribly sorry girls, but I'm afraid I have to go on to bed," Rarity chuckled, "The little darling hasn't even been born yet and he's already tiring me out."

"Okay, take care."

Rarity stretched and carefully made her way out of the room.

"Anyway, Applejack, is there any way I could finish hearing your story," Twilight asked.

"Sure, we were out gathering apples and-"

"Scootaloo! C'mon!" A young, female voice called.

"Oh come on," Twilight groaned.

Three young wolves, one yellow, the other orange, and the third white, ran in.

"There's a new wolf," the white one squeaked.

"Awesome," the orange one squeed.

"And she's gonna have a pup," the yellow one exclaimed.

Twilight rolled her eyes. 'Really? Is it THAT noticeable?'

"Not too bad, Twi." Pinkie patted Twilight on the back.

"Gah!" Twilight jumped, "How did you know what I was thinking?!"

"Easy! I-"

"On second thought, please, DON'T tell me." Twilight interrupted.

"Okay." Pinkie Pie bounced toward the three girls.

"Pinkie! Who's the new wolf? And is she having her pup soon?"

"Beats me! Maybe she knows! Ooh! I'm gonna ask her!" Pinkie bounced back to Twilight. "Twilight, are you going to have your puppy soon?"

"No… It'll be another month."

"Aw…" all four groaned.

"It's okay, girls! Rarity'll have hers soon!" The white one squeaked.

"Yay!"

"So...What are you girls' names?" Twilight asked, her mood improving.

The yellow wolf was the first to speak, "Applebloom."

Then the white wolf, "Sweetie Belle."

"And I'm Scootaloo!" The orange one grinned.

"And I'm Pinkie Pie!"

"I know," Twilight said, "you already told me that."

"Oh. Right!"

"So… Sweetie Belle… as in Rarity's sister?"

"Yup! Um…Where did she go?"

"She went on to bed, Sweetie," Fluttershy explained.

"Aw…"

"She does need her rest, but maybe when she wakes up. That is if she doesn't mind."

"Oh...Do you think she'd mind if I could sleep with her?"

"I guess she won't…"

"Yay! Um...Is she in her kennel?"

"Probably…"

"Okay, good night girls!"

"Good night," Everyone answered.

Sweetie Belle went off in the direction that Rarity had. Twilight turned to Applejack. "Anyone other wolves I should know of," she asked.

Applejack thought for a moment. "Nah," was her reply.

"Good. Now, can we get on with the rest of the story?" Twilight asked while laying back down.

"Well, back when Applebloom and I were real young, we were gathering some apples, and when we came back, our entire pack was…" Applejack began to tear up, "They...they were bein' taken by poachers…and...I...I yanked 'Bloom and we ran outta there...But then one of the poachers found us and...knocked the both of us out…"

"How?"

"I don't really know, but I felt like ah ate too many berries, and there was a pinch in mah neck."

"That's the same thing that happened to me!"

"Yeah, it was a tranquilizer, the humans use it to put us to sleep," Fluttershy said. Everyone in the room looked at her. "W- Why is everyone staring at me?"

"Well, anyway, when I woke up I was in this… cage, Applebloom was nowhere to be seen, it smelled really bad, and there were animal skins everywhere." That resulted in a gasp from everyone. Applejack continued, "but soon, a human girl took me out and she had Applebloom, I wasn't quite sure about her, but before I realized what was happening, she gave us both a shot I got that same 'ate too many berries' stuff again."

"Well, makes sense," Fluttershy added, "I mean, she probably didn't want you to be upset by the move."

"...And that's how I ended up here."

"Wow...so your whole family was…?"

"I think so…

"Well, you don't know for sure," Twilight said.

"...Maybe someone's still out there, but I doubt it...Still, I have 'Bloom and the girls here, they're like family ta me, though Fluttershy's allowed out of the kennel every now and then. But she's been here the longest, so I guess she trusts her."

"Who's this girl you keep talking about?"

"Her name's Megan," Fluttershy answered.

"Oh? So she goes around tranquilizing wolves and bringing them here?" Twilight cocked her head.

"Not all of them, just the ones that need help."

"I see, but how long do wolves stay here?"

"Just until they are capable of living on their own again."

"Oh, well I hope this leg heals quickly. One of our pack leaders is missing and everyone's probably worried sick about me."

"Well, um, you may have to stay longer, sometimes Megan keeps animals here if they're pregnant, and waits till after the pup old enough to walk out of the den."

"Great…"

"Maybe she was brought in here?"

"My pack leader? I doubt it. If she were in here, I would have smelled her by now… But just in case, her name's Luna."

"Oh, then it wasn't her, this gal...um...she's a bit odd."

"What does she look like?"

"Grey, and her eyes are...crooked…"

"Then that's not her. She's dark blue, with wings and a horn."

"Wow! She's an alicorn wolf?"

"Yes, in fact we have several."

The girls' jaws dropped. "That's AWESOME!" Scootaloo exclaimed.

"And one of them is my teacher."

Scootaloo and Applebloom raised an eyebrow each. "You're still being trained? Aren't you a little old?" Applebloom asked.

"Applebloom!" Applejack began to scold, but-

"It's alright, Applejack, I am older than most of Celestia's students, but...well…" Twilight blushed, she didn't want to say it was because her magic capabilities were significantly more powerful than most unicorn wolves, so she decided. "I'm just a slow learner."

"How come?"

"Oh...that's just the way I am."

"Okay…"

Twilight looked outside and noticed how dark it had become. Almost immediately, she heard a howl. She jumped. "What was that?"

"Oh that was Rainbow Dash," Applejack answered, "She always howls at night until she goes to sleep."

"Why?"

"We don't know. Whenever one of us asked her about it she always snaps and tells us it's 'none of our business'."

"Well that's uncalled for."

"Well, maybe she justs needs her privacy."

"Maybe, but there's no excuse for acting like a big puppy."

"Agreed." Applejack looked up at the sky, "Well girls, I think we all oughta get some shut-eye, I'll see ya in the morning."

Everyone but Fluttershy and Twilight started to go their separate ways. "Um Fluttershy, aren't you going to go to bed?"

"I will, I just don't sleep here."

"Oh? Where do you sleep?"

The door slowly opened. Twilight watched as a girl walked in with a leash in her hand. She walked over to Fluttershy and bent down. "Are you ready to go?" She asked in a sweet tone.

Fluttershy's tail wagged as she went over to the human. The leash was clipped onto Fluttershy's collar, a collar that Twilight never noticed before. Before she knew it, the girl and Fluttershy were out the door, leaving her in the room alone. She looked outside. She notices a dark cloud that is growing. 'Oh no. Luna, where are you.'

Lancer walked along the stream alongside Celestia. He had managed to calm down, but was still shaken up about the revelation he was given. Just then, the sky grew dark, darker than it normally would. They both looked at the sky. "Let me guess," Lancer said, "Nightmare Moon."

"I'm afraid so," Celestia replied, "head back to the den while you can."

"I can't do that, this is just as much my fight as it is yours."

"This is a pack affair."

"No, this is a family affair, and until the one who took my mother is brought down, I am not going to stand down any longer. You can tell me to leave as much as you like, but that won't do any good. I know I don't have much experience, but I can't just sit on the sidelines and watch. Going after the pack is one thing, but using a member of my family is unforgivable."

Celestia looked at Lancer. "And you feel this strongly about the matter?"

"I do."

"Aww, isn't that sweet," Nightmare Moon's voice said, "But unfortunately, puppies don't survive in battle for long."

"I am not a pup," Lancer growled, "besides, you're one to talk. Possessing my mom? Seriously? You couldn't think of anything better?"

"It was the only way I could gain a form. Now, I would like to destroy you, but Luna sees this another way. If you join us, not only will you be spared, but you will be given power beyond your comprehension. Complete with knowledge on how it works."  
"As tempting as it is, I'll pass. As cliche as it sounds… I… want… my… mommy…"

"Then you shall share your pack's fate!"

Nightmare Moon fires a beam at Lancer and Celestia. There was a flash of light before there was a patch of burnt grass, where Celestia and Lancer once stood…

TO BE CONTINUED...


	7. Nightmare Moon Chapter 1

**Nightmare Moon**

**Chapter 1**

Bright Eyes couldn't believe what she had witnessed. In a split second her leader's sister and her... best friend were vaporized in the paws of a demon who had possessed her leader. Now all that remained in their place was burned grass. Nightmare Moon laughed as she changed into a dark mist and vanished.

Bright Eyes froze, she tried to think of what she should do; she wanted to cry her eyes out, but she knew she couldn't. It wouldn't bring them back, nor would it stop this new villain. All she could do is run back to the pack and warn them…

Lightning Thrash was brought back to the cave he was interrogated in. He immediately laid down, thinking of how he was to escape just before a flash of light was seen. He covered his eyes in shock. As the light died down, he started to hear some groans followed by a male voice saying, "Are we dead?"

He looked to where the light was to see Lancer and Celestia. Lancer looked around to see that he was only in a cave. "Okay, that time, I probably should have listened."

Celestia looked over at Lancer. Instead of a formal sentence, as she would normally give, she simply said, "Ya think?"

Lightning stood up and attempted to kneel, but stumbled. "I-I'm sorry about my...my.."

Celestia saw Lightning, "Lightning, what happened to you?"

"Interrogation with a crash landing. Not pretty."

"Let me guess, Nightmare Moon?" Lancer asked.

"Yeah...and King Sombra."

"Sombra…" Celestia covered her face with her paw, "This...can this get any worse?"

"Please don't jinx it," Lancer said, "Every time someone asks if something could get worse, it usually does."

Celestia sighed, "As long as Chrysalis and Discord don't show up, we'll be fine."

"And the jinxing continues… Can we focus on something like -I don't know- getting out of here?!"

"Well, unfortunately Nightmare Moon blocked my magic frequency, so I can't use my magic."

"Okay… Lightning, can you map out where you've been?"

"Okay, but I don't know how that will help," Lighting replied as he used one of his claws to draw on the ground. "Okay, we're over here," Lightning pointed at the cave they're in, "and I was taken to the cave next to this one." He pointed to the one to the left. "That's where I saw Nightmare Moon for the first time."

"Hm… Well, if I can remember my spells correctly, Nightmare Moon would have to have used a short-range teleportation spell for her to be able to block our magic, is that correct Aunt Celestia?"

"I believe so, unless she was somewhere else…"

"Okay, but in either case, that means that she must have set up her base near the pack."

"Good, it shouldn't be too much of an escape.

"Except we don't exactly know where we are, plus…" Lancer picked up his chains. "It's not like we can leave any time we want."

"Well...You are wanting me to cheer up."

"That's where we need to really think. We need to find a way out of the chains and past the guards."

"How did you know there were guards," Lightning asked.

"What enemy team does not?"

"Oh, right," Lightning blushed.

Solaris continued sniffing the ground, still on the lookout for Luna and Twilight, but suddenly, he heard panting. He looked up and saw Bright Eyes running toward him. He could see the tears that were streaming down her eyes. "Bright Eyes," He asked, "What's wrong?"

She was still panting heavily, but her message was still clear. "Lancer and Celestia… had a run-in… with Nightmare Moon…"

Those two words, Nightmare Moon, made his heart sink. "Bright Eyes, get to the main den, I'll need you to tell everyone what happened, but I'll gather them up."

Bright Eyes nodded and ran towards the den. Solaris began to howl while running through the forest, fearing the worst.

Twilight woke up for the fifth time. She kept having nightmares, this last one being the worst. She had just given birth to her pup, and she was suddenly taken away by a large demon. Then another wolf appeared. This one had a gold aura about him. He had quickly taken down the demon, but it took another wolf's body. That one was also defeated, but the demon made its way into the golden wolf, corrupting him. The newly formed monster lunged at Twilight, and that was when she woke up.

Twilight tried to shake the memory off; she felt sweaty, and her hurt leg ached. She began to pant, but her mouth was dry, she saw two bowls, which she learned had food and, more importantly, water. She walked over and...there was no water… 'Oh yeah… I drank it all… Shoot!'

Twilight laid back down by the food bowls when she heard a loud shriek. Twilight's ears perked up. She ran toward the sound of the shriek, looking for the source, she saw the several kennels, looking for the shrieker. Problem was...everyone was up… 'Ok...'

"You too, eh Twilight," Applejack asked.

"Nightmares? Oh yeah."

"It's weird, everyone's complainin' about it, 'Bloom dreamt about the two of us gettin' skinned alive by them poachers."

"Hmm...Strange," Pinkie said, "nobody laughed at my jokes in my dream."

"Ok," Twilight took a deep breath, "Let's get everyone rounded up."

"Um, alright, let's go." Applejack jumped out and covered the southern part, while Twilight and Pinkie headed for the northern part.

Meanwhile, Fluttershy was going through her own nightmare. She was in the middle of a forest, and she was hearing voices.

"She's worthless!"

"How could she have been so small?"

"She won't last a day."

"Maybe she would be better off if she wasn't born at all!"

Those words kept burning their way into her head. She cowered into a small ball, "Please, stop," she begged. That only resulted in laughter.

"Maybe we should leave her to the mountain lions!"

"No, they'd see that as an insult."

Fluttershy swallowed, "Please...stop…"

Fluttershy jolted as she woke up. 'It was a dream?' She found herself back in Megan's room, in her small basket, shaking violently. She panted hard, she felt so lonely.

"Fluttershy?"

Fluttershy jumped, and saw Megan looking at her from her bed. Fluttershy responded by whimpering.

"Did you have a bad dream?"

Fluttershy nodded.

"I did too." Megan motioned for Fluttershy to join her, "Wanna come up here?"

Fluttershy got up, stretched, and lept onto the bed. She nuzzled Megan's chin, rested her head on Megan's chest, and soon both drifted back to sleep, a single thought on both their minds: 'I love you.'


	8. Nightmare Moon Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The wolves gathered in a single den, a commotion so loud it could wake the dead. Solaris and Eclipse were trying to calm the packs, but it was no use. Bright Eyes didn't even give the news yet, which was going to make it even harder for her to give the news of Celestia and Lancer's deaths.

Wisteria had finally reached her last straw when efforts to calm them have failed. "HEY," she finally barked. That finally caused everyone to shut up. "Thank you." She turned to Solaris. "They're all yours, Dad."

"Thank you, Wisteria," Solaris nodded to his daughter, then turned to the pack. "Everyone, we have learned some news that is...most disturbing…" He took a deep breath, "Nightmare Moon has returned."

This caused an eruption from the entire pack, this one even louder than before,

"HEY!" Wisteria shouted again. Everyone stopped, again.

"Thank you again Wisteria."

"You're welcome, Dad."

Solaris turned to the pack. "Now listen, I know she's a threat to the pack, but she's still, sorta, Luna, and if anyone sees her, please report her activity and we will do our best to change her back. The only bright side is that she hasn't killed anyone yet."

Bright Eyes finally spoke up, "That's...not true…"

Solaris gave Bright Eyes a funny look, "What do you-"

"Lancer and Celestia were her first victims. She executed them on the spot."

"What?!" Solaris and Eclipse's mouths dropped.

The pack, once again, broke into an uproar.

"WILL YOU ALL JUST SHU-" Wisteria was interrupted by violent coughs.

Solaris rushed over to his daughter and tried to see what was wrong, "Are you alright, Wisteria?"

Wisteria nodded, but continued coughing. "I think I overdid it," she said as her voice was failing her.

"Okay, just rest, sweetie," Solaris whispered, giving her a light kiss, "I can handle this."

"N-no, it's my pack too, and if they see they're leader like this- I have to stay."

Solaris chuckled, "You're definitely Tia's daughter."

"You know that's true."

"Yes, because I'm your father, and you were scaring the heck out of me when you first came into the world."

"Huh?"

"You'll understand when you're a parent."

"Okay, but shouldn't you be calming the pack?"

Solaris looked back at the barking pack, "I guess you're right. But only if you'll rest, okay?"

"De-"

A loud howl from inside the den stopped the commotion. Everyone looked at the source of the howl, Bright Eyes. Her tail stood erect, showing a sign of authority. Every sign of worry in her eyes was replace by what alphas would see as a sign of leadership. She was unaware of what her body was doing, but it did stop the argument.

Before anyone could utter another word, she spoke, "Look at all of you! This is exactly why I was afraid of telling you any of this. After all, you did do this to us before when Luna was reported missing, so imagine how difficult it is for me to have to tell you that the alpha we were looking for has turned once again into her evil self and kill two of our most valued wolves. Arguing is not going to bring them back."

The pack paused, before Ace spoke up, "She's right, this isn't doing them or us any good. Would Celestia want to see us this way? No! We need to prepare ourselves for the approaching evil, or we'll end up just like Celestia and Lancer."

"And where do you think it'll stop? What if they spot another pack that they want to eliminate? Would they not want to attack that pack too? How far are they going to go? The answer is simple: as far as we'll let them."

The pack began to murmur, trying to decide if they should try to fight, or just roll over like a common mutt.

Dog: HEY!

Lancewing: Sorry, no offence intended.

Feeling they were more than civilian dogs-

Dog: SERIOUSLY?!

NotRamjet97: Sorry, it just came out.

They all decided to prepare for the eventual attack.

Solaris walked up to Bright Eyes. Bright Eyes' tail was still up until she noticed him. "Was I too loud?" Bright Eyes asked, tucking her tail between her legs.

Solaris chuckled, "No, you actually did a much better job than we did."

"Well, I wouldn't go that far. Besides, you're not the only one who lost someone."

"Still, I think maybe...you could be a potential leader."

"I don't know about that...I just saw a void, and I filled it."

"Still, you did a good job. And we'll need this void to be filled."

"I'm honored, but I can't replace Luna."

"i'm not saying you would, but you'd make a good temporary fill-in."

"Oh." Bright Eyes blushed, "But I'm just a gatherer."

"That didn't stop you when you were reigning everyone in.

"Agreed, but still."

"Trust me, you'll be fine."

"I...hope so…."

Twilight looked at the wolves that were in the room. She cleared her throat before, "Thank you all for coming. So, I assume we're all here for the same reason."

"If ya'll mean those nightmares we've been havin', then we are," Applejack confirmed.

"Yeah, they took my muffins," Derpy, a grey, derpy-eyed wolf, added.

"And then they came over and took my Cupcakes!" Pinkie Pie added, "Plus I was a pony! The pony part wasn't so bad, but the cupcake theft was. And then I was a human high-"

"We get it, Pinkie," Applejack interrupted.

"I...Was with my pack again," Rarity began, "And...they were all being murdered again, even my m-" She froze up, and began hyperventilating. Everyone began to think she'd deliver the pup right now!

"Take it easy, Sugarcube," Applejack said, "It was just a dream."

"No… It was real… It happened…"

"I-I know, but we're here, we'll protect ya." Applejack smiled.

"I didn't have that nightmare," Sweetie Belle said. "But I did dream of losing you, Rarity."

Rarity wrapped her little sister in a large hug and pulled her close, "Sweetie Belle, I will do everything within my power to make sure that doesn't happen."

"Well, not as bad as an entire pack, but still," Twilight said, "Where's Rainbow Dash?"

"I'm back here," Rainbow replied gruffly.

"Did you have any nightmares?" Twilight asked.

"Nope! Slept like a pup."

"Then why are you still so grouchy?"

"Because someone woke me up."

"I see…"

"I'm afraid I don't buy it," Applejack said, "because I heard you mumbling in your sleep."

Rainbow shot Applejack a glare, "Are you calling me a liar?"

"Are you callin' ME a liar?" Applejack shot back.

Rainbow huffed, "Look, whatever happens to me is none of your business, so just leave me alone!"

Applejack rubbed her forehead, "Then- Ugh! Never mind!"

Fluttershy woke up and looked for Megan. She wasn't there. Fluttershy sighed and stretched, before jumping off the bed. She felt that her mouth was dry and decided to get some water. She saw the opened door and slipped through, heading toward the stairs. She walked down the stairs and headed towards the kitchen. She found her water bowl by the refrigerator: full. She began to take a few refreshing swallows.

When she had finished, she decided it was best to look for Megan. She sniffed the air for her scent. There were similar scents, but not hers. 'Where is she?' She asked. She finally decided to head into the family room to see if maybe one of the other members of the family knew where Megan was.

She saw Danny, Megan's younger brother, asleep on the couch. Since she didn't want to wake him, she decided to look for someone else.

She heard some noise when she was about to pass the basement door. She looked through it to see a light and a figure moving a box. Hoping maybe Megan might be down there, she headed cautiously down the steps. She didn't go down into the basement that often, it was too creepy when no one's down there. She looked around the corner and, sure enough, found Megan... with her grandmother? As far as Fluttershy remembered, the grandmother never ventured down there, so it was quite a surprise.

"Is it in this box, Grandma," Megan asked.

"Well, it could be, but I haven't been down here in so long-" Grandma made eye contact with Fluttershy, "Well, I think we have a new helper."

Megan furrowed her brow, and looked over to see Fluttershy. "Oh, hey there girl! Did you sleep okay last night?"

A little yip came from her mouth.

"We'll that's good to hear. Do think you can help us find something?"

Another yip followed, along with a wagging tail.

Megan smiled, "Good. Grandma, I think she'll need the key."

"Okay…" Grandma reached into her pocket and pulled out a small, gold key.

Fluttershy sniffed the key for a minute before examining the boxes. When she came across a box that she believed had the key, she pointed to it like a German pointer.

Megan and Grandma came over to the box. Megan gently rubbed Fluttershy's ear, "Is that it, girl?"

Fluttershy nodded.

Grandma opened the box and, after rummaging through it a bit, she brought out a small wooden box. "This is it. This what we were looking for."

"Oh. So what's in the box?" Megan asked.

"Something that has been in our family for generations." She opened it to reveal a silver, heart-shaped necklace.

Megan's eyes widened, "Wow! It's beautiful!"

"And it's yours. Your mother wanted you to wear this when you reach the age of sixteen."

A quietness came over both of them. Fluttershy had heard a few times about...something happening to Megan's parents, but she never got the full details, not that she wanted .to hear what happened. She gave Megan a small nuzzle on her hand, hoping to comfort her.

Megan saw her and smiled, "Thanks, girl."

Fluttershy smiled back.

"Why don't you go ahead and put it on," Grandma suggested.

"Sure, but is it going to dissolve in my hands? It looks pretty old."

"Nonsense, they say that this thing has a magic power that has allowed it to last for centuries, waiting for the right user to possess it, though that is just folklore. I just say 'good quality metal'."

"Well...I'll think about it…" Megan gave the box a look over. She noticed an inscription, but it was in Spanish. 'What does this even mean?' She sighed, she hadn't taken Spanish in High School in favor of home economics. Maybe she could find out on her computer… "Grandma? Can I take this upstairs? I'm gonna see what this inscription means."

"Okay, sweetie, I hope you enjoy it."

"I know I will, Grandma," Megan gave her grandma a hug, and headed upstairs, with Fluttershy following closely behind.

While the pack was preparing for war, small search parties have been sent out to search for Twilight. Firefly and Wind Whistler were covering the human camps while Zecora, Kimono, and Minty covered the forest regions. Minty however, wasn't doing well.

Kimono stopped Minty. "You alright, Minty," she asked.

Minty shrugged.

"Do you need help with...something?"

"No, I'm fine."

"Well...you don't seem fine…"

"With Kimono, I have to agree, for you do not seem very well to me," Zecora commented.

"I-I'm fine! Alright?! I'm fine!" Minty snapped.

"There is no need to raise your voice," Kimono said, "Need I remind you that we could be watched as we speak?"

"Well...maybe I don't care!" And with that, Minty ran off.

Kimono started to run after her, but was stopped by Zecora. "I will see if she is alright. You keep an eye out for Twilight."

"Yes, Zecora," Kimono nodded.

Zecora ran after Minty. Minty paid no attention to what was behind her and kept running. She stopped when she accidentally hits another wolf. "Oh. Sorry. I-" Minty stopped and noticed that there was dust on her nose. 'Wait...' She looked at the wolf, who was just about ready to pounce her.

But suddenly, Zecora jumped in the way, and knocked the attacker out of the way.

The wolf landed on all four paws, and snarled, "How dare you! I will rip you limb from limb!"

"To rip me limb from limb would be cruel, but that is the answer I would expect from a fool," Zecora growled.

The black wolf growled and lunged at Zecora, but Zecora dodged the attack. She immediately pinned him before he could prepare for another attack. "I would urge you not to try that again, but instead run back to your den."

Another wolf knocked Zecora off of the attacker.

"I think you've bitten off more than you can chew." The new wolf sneered.

Minty looked around and revealed saw several more wolves appear. They were surrounded!

"Okay, I think I translated half of it, but I still can't make out the rest of it."

Fluttershy looked at Megan, 'I wish I could help,' She thought.

"I wish I could ask someone at school...but they're kinda jerks." She sighed, and scratched Fluttershy's ear. "Or maybe you could tell me…" Megan sighed, and slipped the necklace on, examining it, it said something about wolves meeting humans, but what's the rest of it?"

"I don't know, I wish I knew." Fluttershy said.

"Whoah!" Megan stared at Fluttershy, "Did you just-?"

"Just what?" Fluttershy looked at Megan.

"You talked!"


	9. Nightmare Moon Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Lancer was chewing on his chain while trying to think of a way to break them. He, Lightning, and Celestia, were captured by Nightmare Moon. They were able to determine where they were, but with their magic blocked, they would have to find another way to break those chains. Granted, his teeth didn't do any good, but at least ideas are flowing through his head. Soon however, his teeth began to ache.

"Lancer, would you stop chewing on that chain," Celestia said, "You're making my teeth hurt just watching you."

"Ih heps me hink," Lancer said still chewing the chain.

"How can that help?" Celestia asked.

Lancer shrugged and kept on chewing. "Phides, maybe I'll guet trou."

"Don't bother...I've tried…" Lightning muttered.

Lancer shrugged, "Hany hother hideath?"

"Uh...Well…" Lightning thought for a moment. "I got nothing."

Lancer continued to gnaw. He suddenly stopped when he started to feel a familiar pain… 'Oh no, not again.'

"Lancer, please, what would your mom think?" Celestia questioned.

But Lancer could not answer because the pain in his head kept growing.

Celestia began to grow worried, "Lancer?"

Lancer's response was, "It's… Gnh… Happening agai-," before he was cut off by a scream of pain.

"Lancer?! What-what's happening again?!"

But there was no answer as he immediately passed out…

"LANCER!"

_Lancer woke up in a den. He surveyed his surroundings and realized that it was his own. "Okay, that wasn't what I expected…"_

_"Lancerrrrr!" A voice called out._

_"I'll be right there." He got up and walked out of the den._

_"Lancerrrr!"_

_Lancer looked around for whoever was calling him._

_"Lancer!" A different voice called, out, this one sounded like-_

_"Bright Eyes!" He saw Bright Eyes, laying on the ground. Something was different about her. While it was indeed Bright Eyes, she had the horn and wings of an alicorn wolf. He brushed it off and rushed over to her, "Are you okay?"_

_"Is anything wrong?"_

_"Actually, I thought I heard a strange voice."_

_She raised an eyebrow._

_"Maybe I was just hearing things."_

_"I hope so..." Bright Eyes sat up and gave Lancer's chest a nuzzle._

_"So, she hasn't been much trouble for you yesterday, has she?"_

_"She?"_

_"You know, little pup, brown fur, has your eyes, calls you 'Daddy'."_

_"Uh, sorry, 'Daddy'?"_

_"Don't you remember?"_

_"N-no..."_

_"Really? You don't remember our daughter? The only pup we have?"_

_"W-We have a pup?"_

_"Yes, don't you remember?"_

_"No, I guess I must be going through a bit of amnesia."_

_Bright Eyes looked at him, "Maybe I should look you over..."_

_"Maybe…"_

_The voice called again, "Lancerrrrr!"_

_Lancer jumped. "Did you hear that?"_

_"Hear what?"_

_"That voice."_

_The voice called again, "Lancerrrrrr!"_

_"It's getting closer…"_

_"What is?"_

_"I know I heard it..."_

_"Look, let's get back to the den, I need to give you a look over,"_

_"Uh...okay, but could I see our pup?" Lancer asked, genuinely curious what a pup of his and Bright Eyes would look like._

_"You'll have plenty of time to see her once I know you're okay."_

_"Well...okay…" Lancer sighed._

_"Lancerrrrr!"_

_"GET OUT OF MY HEAD!"_

_Bright Eyes gave Lancer a concerned look, "Are you okay?"_

_"Oh, but I'm standing right in front of you."_

_Lancer looked in front of him to see… "Nightmare Moon!"_

_Bright Eyes furrowed her brow, but her eyes widened when she saw the demon. She gasped, "What do you want?"_

_Nightmare Moon said nothing as she lunged at Lancer, turning into a dark mist._

_Lancer braced himself, preparing for what was going to happen; but everything froze._

_"Lancer," another familiar voice said._

_He looked at the source. "Mom?"_

_"Lancer, thank goodness you're alright."_

_"Yeah, but what just happened."_

_"That was only a preview of what is yet to come. Unless Nightmare Moon is defeated for good, you will eventually fall to her."_

_"So unless nothing changes, I'll be one of her victims?"_

_"No, you'll be a victim of darkness."_

_He looked at Bright Eyes._

_"You must stop Nightmare Moon before it is too late."_

_"But how do I do it without hurting you?"_

_"You'll know when the time comes. Right now, you are the only one who can stop her." Her horn touched his, transferring a bit of her magic to him. "For now, this should give you what you need to get back to the pack."_

_With that, Luna began to vanish._

_"Wait! Come back!"_

Lancer jolted awake, standing up.

Celestia rushed to her nephew. "I was so worried about you, Lancer."

Lancer said nothing, for he was still trying to process what he saw.

"Lancer?"

He put a paw to his head. "Wow, what a rush…"

"What happened?"

"I just had another weird dream."

"Does it tell us how to get out of here," Lightning asked.

Lancer chuckled, "I wish. Mom did give me some of her magic, but I don't know what good that will do."

Lightning shrugged, "Maybe it'll get through that frequency jammer-thingy."

"Hm… Aunt Celestia?"

Celestia thought for a moment, "Well, I don't suppose it could hurt anything…"

"Except the chains if it works." He closed his eyes and began to focus on breaking the magic barrier. In just a few seconds, his eyes shot open as they gave off a golden glow. His horn let off a yellow glow before a shock wave was emitted. "Did it work?"

They were gone! Lancer jumped back, not knowing what-

"We're up here, Lancer," Celestia said, from above, with Lightning floating next to her, engulfed in Celestia's magic.

Lancer gave a sigh of relief. "Now let's get out of here."

Celestia floated down, and let Lightning down as well. "Yes, we must move swiftly."

Megan stared at Fluttershy. No words were exchanged. They merely stared at each other, both their jaws open. The tension was so much that one could cut it with a knife. It was odd for the both of them to understand each other, they had both always wanted to know the other's thoughts (Fluttershy could understand a lot of what Megan said, but there were some things she couldn't understand).

At last Megan spoke, "How are you able to speak now?"

"I-I don't know," she replied, "This is new for me too. I mean, I've been talking my whole life, but for you to understand me now is new."

Megan had to think for a minute. "Oh yeah, wolves don't communicate the way humans do."

"Um… Yeah…" Fluttershy laid down, "This feels so weird…"

"Tell me about it," Megan laid down on the bed. Then something dawned on her. "Wait, have wolves always been able to understand humans?"

"No… I was able to learn how to understand humans after living with you, though there are still some things I don't understand."

"Oh?" Megan sat up on the bed, "Like what?"

"Um… Well… Why is it when it starts getting cold, you always leave for several hours, except for a couple days?"

"Uhh...Oh! You mean school?"

"School?"

"Umm… Yeah… Well, let's see, I mainly go there to learn stuff like history, math, science-"

All of those words were Greek to Fluttershy. "Um, what is that? If you don't mind my asking."

"Uh...Well, history is about stuff that happened in the past, like the Revolutionary War or President Kennedy's assassination, or-" Megan saw this was not registering with Fluttershy. "I'll explain later."

"Um, okay…"

"Say, do you happen to know the stories of the other wolves?"

"Well… Some of them."

"Could you tell me one?"

"Well, Twilight, the one you just rescued, was looking for her pack leader when she was caught in a bear trap. Her sister was looking for help when you showed up."

"Oh… I never saw her sister, or any other wolf for that matter, just her."

"Oh… Maybe you'll be able to get through to Rainbow Dash."

"Which one is she?"

"She's the blue wolf who howls every night."

"Oh...her, yeah, I would like to find out what happened to her,"

"Me too…"

"So does everyone get along? Or do you fight a lot?"

"They get along just fine for the most part."

"'For the most part'," Megan raised an eyebrow.

"Rainbow Dash doesn't talk with us very much."

"Ah, well, maybe we can fix that," Megan grabbed her keys off the desk where the computer also resided, "Shall we?"

"Sure," Fluttershy's tail started wagging.

"So what is this, Twilight?" Applejack finally asked.

Twilight looked up from what she was writing, gently laid the pencil down, and replied, "I have no idea, but for some reason, we all had nightmares last night."

"No kidding."

Twilight sighed, "I know that doesn't help, but there has to be a reason…"

"And what would that be?"

"I don't know."

"Ooh! Maybe it's that food we ate last night! I knew it needed more frosting!" Pinkie exclaimed.

"I...don't think so," Twilight told the energetic pink wolf, "I think it might be something else…"

"Oh! It needed more CHOCOLATE!" Pinkie squealed.

"But won't that make ya sick," Applejack asked.

"It's true darling," Rarity answered, "I heard one dog died after eating it."

"Don't you mean 'wolf'," Pinkie asked.

"No, it was a domestic breed of dog that ate a lot of chocolate."

"Really? I ate a whole box of that stuff and didn't feel sick."

Everyone just stared at her in disbelief.

"What? It was when I was little. I've cut back since then."

Rarity nearly fainted.

"Well…anyway, maybe Fluttershy can give us some answers," Twilight turned to Applejack, "When does she usually come back?"

"Um...well, usually around-"

Applejack was interrupted by the metal door opening, and Fluttershy and Megan entered.

"Right now."

"Um, hi everyone," Fluttershy greeted, "Uh, Megan would like to tell you all something, if that's okay with you."

Twilight began to raise an eyebrow. "Tell us what?"

"That I can understand you," Megan grinned.

Every wolf in the room gasped, everyone except Fluttershy that is.

"H-how is that, possible?!" Twilight asked.

"That was what I thought when I heard Fluttershy speak after I put this necklace on," Megan said.

Twilight walked closer and looked up at the necklace, "Do you mind getting closer, so I can look at it better?"

"Oh. Sure." She takes it off and holds it closer to Twilight. Twilight sniffed the necklace, and held it with her magic. "Please be careful with that. It's very old."

Twilight nodded, looking over the necklace. "Very interesting..."

"What," Fluttershy asked.

"The design is really amazing."

Applejack rolled her eyes, while Rarity bolted up, "What did you say?"

"I said that it had an amazing design."

Rarity ran over, and looked over Twilight's shoulder. "Oh...My!"

"What's the big deal," Rainbow muttered.

Applejack rolled her eyes, "Well, it's makin Megan understand us, so that's kind of a big deal."

Rainbow "Hmm"-ed, and walked away.

"Could I have my necklace back now," Megan asked.

Twilight gave Megan back the necklace.

She immediately put it back on. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

"So what did you guys think?"

"I think it looks absolutely marvelous," Rarity answered.

"Very nice craftsmanship," Twilight added.

"Well, I know it's pretty, but does it mean anything to any of you?"

"To be honest, no. Maybe Zecora would know, that is if I get out of here."

"Zecora?"

"She's one of our doctors, and knows potions and magic."

"Oh, well, as much as I'd like to let you go and find out, you still need to heal, not to mention we should probably keep you here till your pup is born and can survive out in the world."

"It'll be a whole month before I have it. Even then, it still needs to grow to the point where I would allow it out of a den. Plus, my pack is probably worried sick."

"I know, but it's just to be safe, do you really want your pup born out in the wild?"

"What you call 'out in the wild', is our home, and I don't know about your kind, but we'd rather have our offspring in our home with our families."

"But if you stay here, we can make sure your pup's healthy, isn't that more important?"

"Oh yeah, I see," a voice said annoyed. Everyone looked. It was Rainbow Dash. "It's way more important to make sure a single pup is healthy instead of making sure that one wolf is with her family."

"What do you mean by that?" Twilight glared.

"You know that pups are more vulnerable than we are," Rarity added.

"Well what's the point in having one if you can't even see him?"

"What in tarnation are you talkin about, sugarcube?"

"I was taken from my mate and pup by a bunch of hunters," Rainbow huffed.

'She had a pup?' Twilight thought.

"So trust me, I know how she feels."

"Rainbow-" Applejack started, but was interrupted by Rainbow.

"What? Are you gonna tell me how you didn't know, and that you're sorry? Or maybe lecture me on how I shoulda told you all?"

"Rainb-" Rarity tried, but was interrupted.

"Well, I don't want any apologies, alright?! I don't want lectures either!" Tears began to form in the blue wolf's eyes, "All I want is my family!" With that, Rainbow storms out.


	10. Nightmare Moon Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Spike attempted to cover his face with his paws from the sunlight, maybe everyone else was up, but so what? He wasn't a wolf like everyone else; what could he do? "Spike if you don't wake up I'll personally escort you to-" Before Comet Tail could finish, Spike bolted up.

"Happy?"

"No, but it might help me get happy."

"Good." He started to walk out of the den, "So why do you need me up so early?"

"We're gonna search for Twilight."

"Again? We already know that humans took her."

"Yes, so I'm gonna have to go to their 'town'."

"WHAT?!"

"Look, I doubt you'll understand, but I took a promise that I'd take care of her and protect her if necessary. That's the whole point of being mates."

"You're going to get yourself killed."

"Well, if I do it trying to get my Twilight back, then that's perfectly fine with me. If you don't wanna come, then you don't need to come, I just…" Comet sighed, "You get the idea."

"I'm going with you, I just wasn't sure if you'd make it since you're not as stealthy as me."

"Please… I'm a wolf. We have our ways."

"Still, it's common knowledge cats are stealthier."

"Please," Comet rolled his eyes, "But let's get going."

"Let's."

"No you don't," A male voice called out.

Comet looked to his side and saw: "Shining…"

"As the alpha protector, I can't let you go. However...as your...brother-in-law, I need to go with you."

"Look, Shining, I really appreciate it, but just the two of us will have a hard time moving through the town unnoticed. Add another big, alpha wolf and we'll be seen instantly!"

"But she's MY sister!"

"Well she's MY mate! I made a promise."

Spike roared, "GUYS! Really? You're fighting again?"

Both wolves shot each other glares.

"Let's just go. I'm not even going to try to deal with this one."

Both wolves huffed, and followed Spike.

* * *

Bright Eyes looked at herself in the stream. Just last night, she was trying to bring order to a pack that could not control themselves upon the recent news, but now… Bright Eyes carefully rest her head in the water, letting it flow over her muzzle. 'I wish you were here Lancer,' she thought.

Just then, she saw someone else's reflection in the water. Bright Eyes sat up to see Eclipse.

"Oh, Eclipse." She immediately bowed out of instinct.

"Bright Eyes, please don't do that," Eclipse said, "There's no need for it."

"Oh, right." Bright Eyes immediately stood up.

"Bright Eyes… do you need to talk about what happened last night?"

"I already told everyone."

"I didn't mean tell me about it, I meant talk, it might feel good to get it off your chest."

"Oh, right. I wanted to talk with Zecora about it, but it would just feel… weird."

Eclipse chuckled, "Yeah, I know how that is."

"But then talking to you would be just as weird…"

"Oh...I'm sorry," Eclipse lightly blushed.

"It's okay. Just… Something I need to get used to I guess."

"Yeah…"

"It's just happening all so fast. First Luna becomes Nightmare Moon, Twilight's taken by humans, then Lancer and Celestia and are taken out by Nightmare Moon, and now…"

"I know, it was hard for me too after I became Luna's mate."

"I know."

"To know that...monster has her is unbearable," Eclipse bared his teeth.

"And then what she did to Lancer puts us in the same den."

"Yeah."

"But I can't tell you enough that I wasn't born as a leader. I was just thinking the ones we lost, knowing how they would react if they saw the madness that was going on inside that den."

"Bright Eyes, it's not that you can give orders that makes you a leader, it's what you do with that power that counts."

"I know, 'with great power comes great responsibility.' I heard that line before.

"I believe you'll make a suitable replacement for Luna."

"But I ca-"

"It's not permanent, it's just until we can change her back."

Bright Eyes blushed. "Oh. Right."

"ECLIPSE!"

Eclipse turned to the source of the voice. It was Kimono. "Kimono? What happened," Eclipse inquired.

"Zecora and Minty have gone missing!"

Bright Eyes and Eclipse gave a distressed "What?!" in unison.

"Minty wasn't feeling so well emotionally and ran away from us. Zecora went after her to try to comfort her, but when I went to look for them, they were nowhere to be found."

"Great..." Bright Eyes muttered.

"Gather everyone up," Eclipse sighed, "I'll need Cadence to try and use a shield spell."

"Got it." With that, Kimono darted off.

"Eclipse… I'm not going to sit here while everyone vanishes from our lives."

"And you think I will? I need all the Alphas, if we're going to stop her we need to stop her with everyone available."

"I know. Just consider that sentence as my acceptance into that position."

"Fine, but you'll need to stay here, I can't have the pack without a strong leader if we're..."

"I know. Right now, my mind is set on one thing and one thing alone: to free Luna and destroy Nightmare Moon."

"All I want is my mate and my son's death avenged."

"Why do you think I'd add Nightmare Moon's death to my list?"

"Who's going to lead the pack if we're gone?"

"I guess Eclipse, then Shining Armor and Cadence, and end with Wisteria. I hope they have good betas selected."

"I'm going to need them all, which is why you need to stay."

"Got it."

"Then let's go."

The two raced back toward the territory.

* * *

Firefly and Wind Whistler, meanwhile, were now soaring toward an odd structure. "Think there's anything in there?" Wind Whistler asked.

"Only one way to find out," Firefly smirked. She increased her speed as she sped towards the structure. She attempted a double inside-out loop, but she lost control and spiraled downward, falling into a well.

"Firefly!" Wind Whistler dove down to the bottom of the well, but froze when she saw water. She took a deep breath, and dove into the water. The only problem is that everything was pitch black down there, and Firefly was nowhere to be found. Wind Whistler was underwater for almost a whole minute before she emerged. She breathed heavily as she frantically looked around. She didn't notice the bubbles that were forming from behind her before Firefly emerged coughing violently. Wind Whistler used her wings to propel herself forward towards Firefly. She grabbed Firefly's neck and tried to swim upward, but unfortunately, she wasn't the strongest wolf in the pack, and Firefly was, making her heavier. 'C'mon!' Wind Whistler thought, 'Why's she out?'

Wind Whistler looked up. There was only a small bit of light that was allowed inside the well because the well was so deep. It doesn't help that they can't fly since they need to be out of the water in order to do that. Wind Whistler had no choice. She lifted her head and let out a long, loud howl.

* * *

Twilight's ears perked up. "Wind Whistler?"

"Who," Megan asked.

"A member of my pack! Maybe I can get home!"

"Twilight, you remember our talk, don't you?"

Twilight gave a light growl, "But maybe I can be with Comet..."

Megan rubbed her head, "I tell ya what, how bout I go and see?"

"Fine, but I'm going with you."

"No! You need to rest."

"But how will you know it's Wind Whistler?"

Megan paused for a long time, before, "Fine! But you're staying IN the car."

Twilight huffed, "Fine… but if Comet's there, I don't think I can help myself…"

"You'll have to try."

Twilight sighed, "I'll try, but I have to ask; what's a car?"

* * *

Celestia, Lancer, and Lightning were getting tired from their escape. They all laid down to rest knowing that they were far enough away from the territory. They would have been home by now, but Lancer got mixed up in the confusion and took them in the wrong direction by mistake.

"We can't rest for long, Nightmare Moon will realize that we are no longer in her prison," Celestia said.

"I'm surprised that she doesn't know right now," Lancer replied. "After all, it was Mom who set us free."

"That's why we have to keep going."

"Well, we would be home by now if SOMEONE didn't get us lost," Lightning said.

Lancer growled, "For the..." He stops to count with his paws. "Tenth time... It was an accident and I am sorry that happened. Move on!"

Lightning rolled his eyes, "Whatever… Hey, why don't you fly up there and find out where we are?"

"Because if I do that, I'll risk giving away our position, and that's the last thing we need right now."

"Well, can't you teleport us home?"

"Long range teleportation has unpredictable effects, plus I need to know exactly where we are."

"But it's better than being LOST."

"Would you rather be inside-out?"

Lightning grunted, then. "Couldn't we dig?"

"Now THAT is the most absurd idea I have ever heard."

"Well, we're wolves, aren't we? And wolves are canines, and canines are known for being good diggers."

"But it does nothing to help us navigate!"

"ENOUGH! BOTH OF YOU!" Celestia was on her last nerve. "THIS ISN'T HELPING ANYONE!"

They both stared at her in awkward silence.

Celestia took a deep breath, "I'm sorry, but with everything going on I'm…"

"I'm sorry, Aunt Celestia," Lancer lowered his head and tail.

"It's fine, Lancer, I'm just...stressed."

Lancer gave his Aunt a gentle nuzzle, hoping to comfort her. Celestia started to smile as she nuzzled back.

"Um...can we get going now?" Lightning pleaded.

Suddenly, they heard a howl. They all perked their ears up and listened for it. Lancer looked at Celestia. "Is that..."

"Wind Whistler," Celestia confirmed. "She's in trouble."

"Now we really have a reason to get going," Lightning pointed out.

With that, all three wolves took off.

* * *

Megan led Twilight and Fluttershy (who came to give Twilight some company) to her car, a blue station wagon, and opened the back door, letting them in, before Megan got in the driver's seat.

"What is this thing?" Twilight asked.

"Megan's car." Fluttershy replied.

"This thing?"

Fluttershy nodded and pulled the door closed behind her with her jaw while Megan started the car. Twilight jumped at the car's engine began its work. "What was that?!"

"The engine; it makes the car move."

"Oh...okay."

Megan looked back to Fluttershy and Twilight, "Do you want the windows down?"

"Yes please." Fluttershy replied.

Megan pressed a button and the glass panels next to the two wolves slid away. "...What on Earth?"

"I was lowering the windows," Megan answered.

"...Oh..."

Fluttershy rest her head on the place the window had been. Twilight did the same, while watching the car drive past the trees. She lifted her head and yawned, but as she did, a strange thing filled her body, it felt… good... She left her mouth open and-"Wow!"

Fluttershy gave Twilight a look, "What?"

"RHAS IS AMAHIN!" Twilight replied...but it was difficult with her mouth hanging open.

Megan giggled. "I see you discovered why dogs like to stick their heads out of the window."

"Huh?"

"Well, a lot of dogs like hanging their head out the window."

"Ah."


	11. Nightmare Moon Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Comet Tail, Shining Armor, and Spike were hugging the wall of a building while hiding under some tables. "How did you bring me into this?" Shining whispered.

"You tagged along," Comet answered. "If you don't like it, you know the way back."

Shining was about to say something, but… "Don't even," Spike said, "Comet didn't force you into it." He was shushed by both wolves.

"Keep your voice down," Comet said, "you'll give us away."

"The humans are louder than we are right now. I'm pretty sure we're fine."

"Yeah… Where are we anyways?"

"A restaurant, I think…" Spike noted.

"How do you know that?"

"I've read quite a few of those books you brought Twilight, Comet."

"Oh…"

"Yeah. Also, she'd appreciate it if you stop giving her vampire books."

"Well, unfortunately I can't read, so it's kinda hard to see the difference from those and science fiction."

"Hm… Good point..."

"Yeah, but I'll try to learn if I can get Twi back…"

"Might be a good idea. And hey, Cadence and Bright Eyes also read. Why don't you ask one of them?"

"Um...cuz Twilight's kinda cute when she's in 'teacher mode'."

"Watch it…" Shining bumped Comet.

"Sorry, but it's true…"

"Um… Do you guys think we should figure out an escape route?" Spike suggested.

"Oh, I've had a plan the whole time," Comet said.

"WHAT?!" Spike and Shining asked in unison.

"Yeah, I just didn't want to rush it, after all, there's," Comet licked his chops, "Bacon…"

"SNAP OUT OF IT," they both barked.

"Sorry...but…"

"Hey, what was that noise?" A human asked.

"Uh oh…" All three said in unison.

"It sounded like a dog," another answered.

"Comet? Can you put that plan into effect, like, NOW!"

"Okay, hold on…" Comet closed his eyes, and his horn lit up…

* * *

The trio teleported out of the restaurant, but they found themselves in another building. "Where are we now?" Shining asked.

Spike looked and saw a shelf that held boxes of… "Kitty litter?"

"Who'd put up a box of cat poop?" Comet asked.

"Maybe it's valuable?"

Both wolves looked at Spike.

"What? Human have had stranger things."

"Like?"

"Like… Um… Hm… What about rubber bones?"

"Strange...but not as weird as cat dumpings."

"Let's just go," Spike started to say, but he saw a certain white dog. "I-I-It's Bolt!"

Both wolves asked, "Who?"

"You never heard of him? He was a hero among the humans!"

"Really? That short mutt?"

"Yeah! He keeps the world safe from the evil Doctor Calico while protecting his owner, Penny."

"How?"

"Well, he has heat vision, enhanced strength, speed, and (best of all) his feared superbark!"

Comet and Shining looked at each other, "So why's he with a cat and a...thing in a ball?"

"Huh?" Spike looked again, and sure enough, there was a cat and a hamster in a ball. "Huh… Never heard of them. Maybe new sidekicks?"

"Maybe…"

"AH! WOLVES!" The wolves looked at the source of the voice. It was a frightened human. "AND AN OCELOT!"

"Mountain lion…" Spike muttered.

"I don't think they care!" Shining shouted.

"Someone call animal control!"

"I think you're right, Shining. We gotta move," Comet replied.

"Maybe teleport us somewhere NOT overrun with humans?"

"This way!"

"Huh? Who said that?" Shining heard a voice, but he couldn't find the source.

"Hurry!"

"Okay who said that?"

"We don't have time for this! Come on!"

"Let's go!" Spike darted off in that direction.

"SPIKE! WAIT," Shining called, but his efforts to bring Spike failed. Comet and Shining nodded at each other before chasing after him.

* * *

Wind Whistler was still trying to get Firefly and herself out if the well. Needless to say, she was having no success and was fatigued from the past thirty minutes of trying to scale the wall and even flap her wings. She thought In the end, however, she was forced to go with her logic and give up. There was no way out of that well, and she and her partner were doomed to die in a well… unknown to the rest of the pack…

Firefly began to notice that Wind Whistler was starting to stop. She asked, "We're never getting out of here, are we?"

"No, we're not. There's no way out of here. My wings are too wet, and I can't get my claws to grip the walls."

"Darn...and it's all my fault," Firefly sighed.

"Well, there is a time and place to show off, and this definitely wasn't the time…"

"Well, since this is it, I guess I should tell you that I had a pup about a year or two ago."

"You what?!"

"Yeah, but her father died trying to drive off a grizzly and my daugher met another wolf and started her own pack. Unfortunately, my pup… Well… Disappeared… She was taken by poachers."

"Wow...I'm sorry...What was her name?"

Before she could answer, a voice called from up top "Hello? Is someone down there?"

Both wolves looked up. "Yes," they both yelled

Firefly added, "We can't get out."

"Just stay calm, we'll get you out of there," another voice said. This one sounded very familiar…

"Twilight!"

Soon, a bucket was lowered to them, "I'm afraid I can only get one of you out at a time."

"Wait, I have a better idea," Twilight said, "If you can put me on the edge of the well, I may be able to use my magic to levitate them out."

"But would that hurt your pup?"

"No, in fact using magic on occasion can soothe pups."

"And too much?"

"Can range from allergies to magic to a minor defect. Nothing serious."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Okay… Also, allergies to magic?"

"Yeah, a bit of irony to that."

"Sometime today would be nice, girls." Firefly pointed out.

Twilight was helped to the edge of the well, and her horn began to glow. Soon, an aura of light embodied Firefly and Wind Whistler and they were lifted slowly out of the well. The were almost at the mouth of the well when…

"TWILIGHT!"

Twilight turned to the source of the voice to see Celestia, Lancer, and Lightning Thrash. "Celestia! Lancer!" She accidentally stopped the spell, causing Wind Whistler and Firefly to fall into the well again with long, loud screams. Twilight looked back in the well and blushed when she processed what happened. "Oops, sorry!"

She proceeded to try again, though the thought of seeing her mentor again was weighing upon her.

"Who's down there right now," Lancer asked.

"Wind Whistler and Firefly." Twilight replied, trying not to lose focus.

"Ah. Allow me." Lancer's horn began to glow, and he was able to lift the two wolves out of the well.

"Thank you Twi-," Wind Whistler started to say, but was interrupted when she noticed Celestia and Lancer. Firefly was just as surprised as Wind Whistler.

"What," Lancer asked, "is there something on my fur?"

"No," Wind Whistler replied, "It's just that… We assumed you were deceased."

"You thought we were dead? Who gave you that idea?"

"Bright Eyes saw Nightmare Moon vaporize you and Celestia."

"What she saw was actually a teleportation spell," Celestia answered, "She wanted you to believe that we had perished."

"Why? Wouldn't it be easier to destroy you?"

"She was saving our deaths for last because she wanted us to suffer by watching you die. But either way, you would have been put into a state of chaos."

"Yeah..."

"I wonder if-" Twilight winced in pain. Apparently the pup hadn't enjoyed the magic show.

"TWILIGHT!" There was concern in Celestia's voice.

Twilight jumped at her name. "Yes?"

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, just my pup reacting to my trying to get Wind Whistler and Firefly out."

"You used magic, didn't you?"

"Yes..."

Her tone then went from concerned to angry. "What were you thinking?!"

"I-I'm sorry, I was just trying to save them..."

"You could have hurt your pup!"

"They could have drowned!"

"The human was willing to take them both up, why not let her?"

"Because it would be faster and it wouldn't be as exhausting for her."

"But at least your pup would be safe."

Megan decided she should speak up, "If I may suggest something, I think-"

Celestia, along with every other wolf in the area (except Twilight and Fluttershy), gasped. "Did that human understand everything we said?"

"Yes, Celestia...she has a necklace that allows her to understand us, and vice versa." Twilight explained.

"That's odd, I've never heard of necklaces doing that," Lancer looked to his Aunt, "Right?"

"Actually, I have heard of it," Celestia said.

"Really?"

"Yes, but it only works on someone who truly has a heart for wolves."

"Why didn't you tell anyone about this?"

"Because I didn't think it would appear in their lifetimes, but your mother was going to tell you, but she was captured before she was given the chance."

"Um...Excuse me?" Megan asked.

Celestia and Lancer looked at Megan.

"Well, if it's possible, I could help to treat those wounds. After all, that is a pretty nasty gash on his shoulder." She pointed to Lightning.

"It's no big deal."

" I see, but what about that broken wing?"

"It's not broken," Lightning attempted to- "Ouch!"

"Really? Sure seems like it to me."

Lightning's cheeks turned a bright shade of red that even his black fur couldn't hide. "I guess you should…"

* * *

The trio finally made their way out of the pet store. They were panting heavily from all the excitement. "Thanks, whoever you are." Comet panted.

"You're welcome," the voice said finally revealing himself to be…

"Bolt?!" Spike's jaw dropped.

"Yup," the small, white dog replied. "Now, what brings you to a pet store?"

"Um...we accidentally teleported here from a restaurant."

"Why were you in a restaurant?"

"We're looking for my mate, Twilight," Comet explained, "I guess you haven't seen her? She's lavender and has a six pointed star on her hindquarters."

"Oh. Well, I'm sorry, but I haven't seen her."

"I figured as much, thanks for saving us, anyway."

"Anytime. It's too bad my pups weren't here, they would love to meet some real wolves...that aren't at the zoo."

"What's a zoo?" Shining asked.

"It's basically a place where humans take injured animals to recover before being released. It's also a place for humans to learn about the animals there."

"Hey! Maybe Twilight's there!" Comet's tail began to wag.

"Maybe. I didn't see her there, but then again, it's been a month since I've last been there."

"So there's hope."

"And if she isn't and we get caught again," Shining asked.

Spike commented, "Then Bolt could get us out of there. He did it back there. Then again… Why didn't he use his powers?"

"Powers," Bolt asked.

"You know… The ones that the humans were reporting."

"Oh, I see… Yeah, those 'reports' were actually episodes in a television show. They're basically performances."

"But I thought you were just fighting aliens a few months ago..."

"That's a replacement."

"Seriously?"

"Yup… Long story short, I accidentally got shipped across the country, found my way back, saw my replacement with Penny, walked away depressed, found out Penny was in danger, rescued her from a fire, and basically quit the show."

"Oh, that would make an interesting show."

"Well, at the time, before I got lost, I had no idea that what I was doing was for show. They made me believe that I actually was a superdog."

"Really? That's weird."

"It was a little something they did to keep the ratings up because… well… I thought my owner was in danger constantly, and I was just doing my job to protect her."

"Wait, dogs LIKE humans?" Shining asked.

"Yes. Well, most of them anyway."

"Not sure how any canine can like a human."

"Humans are able to give dogs the home that they need as well as provide for them. Some of us like to return the favor in different ways. Mine… Well… You get the idea."

"Yeah… But still, a human?"

Comet pushed Shining to the side. "Don't mind him. He just doesn't like humans."

"Ah."

"Can you blame me? They hunt us, kill us, skin us, and some even eat us!"

Bolt gagged at the idea. "Sometimes, dogs have that unfortunate bit of luck.. Some are even taken to labs."

"See?"

"But not all of them are bad."

"Hmmph."

"Bolt?"

Bolt's ears perked up once he heard the new voice. "That's Penny. I have to go, but good luck on finding your mate."

"Yeah...thanks." Comet sighed.

"Hey, keep your chin up. You'll find her. Just hang in there."

"Alright…"

"See ya around!" Bolt ran back towards the pet store, leaving the trio to discuss their next move.

"So… Try to find out about this 'zoo'," Comet asked.

Shining sighed, "Might as well. I mean, what other option do we have?"

Shining's horn began to light up, and with a brilliant flash of light, they were gone.

* * *

The trio found themselves in yet another area. They saw a large expanse of land surrounded by a stone wall. There were humans on top of that stone wall staring at them.

"So this is a zoo," Spike said, "A little limiting, but not bad."

"There are still humans staring at us," Shining pointed out.

"Well right now I don't really care, I just want to find Twilight," Comet said.

"Yeah, just stop nudging me, Comet," Spike said.

"That wasn't me…"

"Then who was it?"

They all looked back. An expression of shock was etched on their faces when they saw a herd of elephantsstanding over them. They were not happy that strange creatures had trespassed onto their territory.

"Comet?"

"Yeah?"

"Who was the goofball that taught you teleportation?"

"Your sister."

Shining froze in embarrassment while Comet and Spike stood in fear. How were they going to get out of this one?


End file.
